A statement this morning by HSBC saying that tax-avoiding Swiss banking unit is "unacceptable" and a promise to make its Swiss unit more transparent.

"2014 was a challenging year in which we continued to work hard to improve business performance while managing the impact of a higher operating cost base," said Gulliver, HSBC's group CEO in the results statement. "Profits disappointed, although a tough fourth quarter masked some of the progress made over the preceding three quarters."

HSBC is also currently embroiled in a tax evasion and money laundering scandal, following whistleblower Herve Falciani's huge leak of thousands of Swiss bank accounts.

"The recent disclosures around unacceptable historical practises and behaviour within the Swiss private bank remind us of how much there still is to do and how far society's expectations have changed in terms of banks' responsibilities. They are also a reminder of the need for constant vigilance over the effectiveness of our controls and the imperative to embed a robust and ethical compliance culture.

"We deeply regret and apologise for the conduct and compliance failures highlighted which were in contravention of our own policies as well as expectations of us.

"In response to, and in parallel with, the tax investigations prompted by the data theft more than eight years ago, we have been completely overhauling our private banking business, putting the entire customer base through enhanced due diligence and tax transparency filters.

"Our Swiss Private Bank customer base and the countries we serve are now both about one‑third of the size they were in 2007. In addition, HSBC is already working to implement the OECD's Common Reporting Standard and other measures to foster greater transparency.

"We cannot change the past. But, looking to the future, we can and must reinforce controls and provide demonstrable evidence of their effectiveness. This forms part of our commitment to Global Standards, to ensure that we will never knowingly do business with counterparties seeking to evade taxes or use the financial system to commit financial crime."

To make matters worse, HSBC warned in its statement that the result of various money laundering and tax investigations will lead could lead to hefty additional fines.